IN THE CASE OF:	

		BOARD DATE:	 11 March 2010 

		DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20090021484 


THE BOARD CONSIDERED THE FOLLOWING EVIDENCE:

1.  Application for correction of military records (with supporting documents provided, if any).

2.  Military Personnel Records and advisory opinions (if any).


THE APPLICANT'S REQUEST, STATEMENT, AND EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant requests, through his Member of Congress, reconsideration of his earlier request for award of the Purple Heart.

2.  The applicant states he served as an infantryman with Company B, 14th Infantry, 71st Division during World War II (WWII).  In April 1945, while he was on patrol in Central Europe near Bayreuth, Germany, his unit, along with 2 or 3 other units of his battalion, encountered heavy artillery and ground assault for a period of 1 to 1 1/2 hours.  He remembers seeing the trees and tree limbs falling as a result of this artillery fire.  He adds that while returning fire, he was struck by 3 shrapnel pieces to his hand from one of the shells that landed near his unit during that battle.  He was unable to continue due to his wounds without medical attention.  He was subsequently administered first aid in the field and when the battle concluded, he returned to his unit and continued to patrol per orders given to his battalion.  He also states that he departed Europe on 28 May 1946 and was ultimately discharged on 11 June 1946 at Fort Dix, NJ.  He received his Combat Infantryman Badge and World War II Victory Medal but not the European-African-Middle Eastern Theater Medal.  Additionally, prior to leaving Fort Dix, NJ, he received a WD AGO Form 106 (Request for Decoration and/or Citation) for award of the Purple Heart for his battle wounds.  He was also advised that the Purple Heart would be mailed to him.  As time went by, the medal never arrived and he eventually gave up.  

3.  The applicant provides a copy of his previously-submitted WD AGO Form 106, dated 10 June 1946, and a copy of his WD AGO Form 53-55 (Enlisted Record and Report of Separation), dated 11 June 1946, in support of his request.
CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  Incorporated herein by reference are military records which were summarized in the previous consideration of the applicant's case by the Army Board for Correction of Military Records (ABCMR) in Docket Number AR20090009860, on 12 November 2009.

2.  The applicant submitted a signed and notarized affidavit, dated 16 December 2009, in which he chronicles the events that led to his injury, which was not previously reviewed by the ABCMR; therefore, it is considered new evidence and as such warrants consideration by the Board.

3.  The applicant’s military records are not available to the Board for review.  A fire destroyed approximately 18 million service members’ records at the National Personnel Records Center in 1973.  It is believed that the applicant’s records were lost or destroyed in that fire.  However, there were sufficient documents remaining in a reconstructed record for the Board to conduct a fair and impartial review of this case.

4.  The applicant’s WD AGO Form 53-55 shows he was inducted in the Army of the United States and entered active service at Fort Devens, MA, on 28 April 1944.  This form also shows at the time of his separation, he held military occupational specialty 610 (Anti-tank Gunner) and was assigned to Company B, 14th Infantry Regiment, 71st Division.

5.  His WD AGO Form 53-55 shows he departed the United States on 26 January 1945 and arrived in the European Theater of Operations (ETO) on 6 February 1945.  He departed the ETO on 28 May 1946 and arrived back in the United States on 6 June 1946.  He completed 9 months and 3 days of continental service and 1 year, 4 months, and 11 days of foreign service.  He was honorably separated on 11 June 1946.

6.  Item 31 (Military Qualifications and Date) of his WD AGO Form 53-55 shows he was awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge and the Sharpshooter Marksmanship Qualification Badge with Rifle Bar (M-1).

7.  Item 32 (Battles and Campaigns) of his WD AGO Form 53-55 shows he participated in the Central Europe and Rhineland campaigns during his service in WWII.



8.  Item 33 (Decorations and Citations) of his WD AGO Form 53-55 shows the Army of Occupation Medal, the European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal, and the Word War II Victory Medal.

9.  Item 34 (Wounds Received in Action) of his WD AGO Form 53-55 contains the entry "None."

10.  The applicant submitted a copy of a WD AGO Form 106, dated 10 June 1946, that shows his personnel records at the time contained no evidence of authorization for award of the Purple Heart but a claim was made for this award due to shrapnel wounds to his hand near Bayreuth, Germany, in or around April 1945.

11.  His reconstructed records do not contain a War Department Letter Order from The Adjutant General's Office that awarded him the Purple Heart.

12.  The Purple Heart was established by General George Washington at Newburgh, New York, on 7 August 1782 during the Revolutionary War.  It was reestablished by the President of the United States per War Department General Orders Number 3 in 1932.  It was awarded in the name of the President of the United States to any member of the Armed Forces or any civilian national of the United States who, while serving under competent authority in any capacity with one of the U.S. Armed Services after 5 April 1917, died or sustained wounds as a result of hostile action.

13.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) provides, in pertinent part, that the Purple Heart is awarded for a wound sustained while in action against an enemy or as a result of hostile action.  Substantiating evidence must be provided to verify that the wound was the result of hostile action, the wound must have required treatment, and the medical treatment must have been made a matter of official record.

14.  The WWII regulation that governs the use of forms is not available for review with this case.  However, historically, the WD AGO Form 106 was used by separation centers to document requests for awards by enlisted members based on their affidavits and/or certification.  A personnel officer at the separation center would take the enlisted member's statement and submit the WD AGO Form 106 to The Adjutant General, Decorations and Awards Branch, Washington DC, for disposition.




DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The applicant’s contention that he should be awarded the Purple Heart for an injury to his hand caused by shrapnel from an artillery shell near Bayreuth, Germany, in April 1945 and the evidence he submitted was carefully considered. However, there is insufficient evidence to grant him the Purple Heart in this case.

2.  The Purple Heart differs from all other decorations in that an individual is not "recommended" for the decoration; rather he or she is entitled to it upon meeting specific criteria.  The criteria for an award of the Purple Heart requires the submission of substantiating evidence to verify that the injury/wound was the result of hostile action, the injury/wound must have required treatment by medical personnel, and the medical treatment must have been made a matter of official record. 

3.  In this case, the WD AGO Form 106 submitted by the applicant at the time of his separation was based on his affidavit and testimony at the time with no substantiating documentary evidence of the injury and/or the medical treatment.  Additionally, there is no indication the Adjutant General published orders to award him the Purple Heart.

4.  The applicant’s personal chronicles and recollection of events were noted.  However, chronicles of events, which were prepared and/or are submitted more than 60 years after the fact, do not by themselves conclusively prove the applicant was wounded or injured as a result of hostile action.  

5.  There is no evidence in his reconstructed records that shows he was wounded or injured as a result of hostile action or treated for such wounds or his treatment was made a matter of official record.  Regrettably, absent evidence which conclusively shows he sustained wounds or injuries as a result of hostile action, that he was treated by medical personnel for those wounds or injuries, and that this treatment was made a matter of official record, there is insufficient basis for awarding the Purple Heart to the applicant.

BOARD VOTE:

________  ________  ________  GRANT FULL RELIEF 

________  ________  ________  GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF 

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

___X___  ____X___  ___X____  DENY APPLICATION
BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION:

1.  The evidence presented does not demonstrate the existence of a probable error or injustice.  Therefore, the Board determined that the overall merits of this case are insufficient as a basis to amend the decision of the ABCMR set forth in Docket Number AR20090009860, dated 12 November 2009.

2.  The Board wants the applicant and all others concerned to know that this action in no way diminishes the sacrifices made by the applicant in service to our Nation.  The applicant and all Americans should be justifiably proud of his service in arms.



      _______ _   X_______   ___
               CHAIRPERSON
      
I certify that herein is recorded the true and complete record of the proceedings of the Army Board for Correction of Military Records in this case.

ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont)                                         AR20090021484



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ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont)                                         AR20090021484



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